Center lock for counterbalanced elevator doors



April s,- 1930.

c. w. PEELLE CENTER LOCK FOR COUNTERBALANCED ELEVATOR DOORS Filed Deo. 12, 1924 I ven/mn Afro/mfr.

Patentedy Apr. s, 1930 UNITED: STATES CHARLES W.

.PATENT ori-"ien CENTER LOCK FOR COUNTERBALANCED ELEVATOR DOORS Application nea December 12, 1924. serial N5."755,-415.

My invention relates to center locks for counterbalanced elevator doors, and more particularly .to a lock of this type which, during such timesas it is desired to permit 15free access to a floor iii a building from the elevator car, may be, manually released upon opening a door, and which will automatically latch when closing a door, but which maybe positively locked so as to prevent the open f ing of the door except by a person provided with a key to release the latch member and thus prevent the unauthorized opening of the doors.

At the present time, different oors of l large .loft buildings, or warehouses, are commonly occupied by different manufacturing,

or merchandising, concerns, access being had to the various floors by the. same elevator or elevators. Such elevators are ordinarily of the freight carrying type, and are also commonly 4used to carry passengers, particularly when a concern has ooes upon the same floor Where it produces or stores its merchandise. `Such-elevators are sometimes operated by regular attendants, While at other'times they are operated by Workmen whoY chance to be engaged at the momentin moving mechandise from one floor of a building to another.v I n such buildings the door openingA communicates directly with. the manufacturing or storage floor space, theelevatordooi` itself being used as the soleprotection against intruders 'and the sole guardagainst thefts of materials of abulk to require the use of the elevator for their removal A4from a floor. During the Workinghours, the likelihood of such intrusion, `or `such theft, is minimized because of the presence of Workers in the factory or storage place, but at night time, or after Working hours, with locks now commonly used, anybody may gain ready access to a floor of the building from the elevator car. Hence, during'suchhours, when anybody may have access to any loft of the'building, the theft of merchandise is not difficult.

lith theabove conditions in mind, l have' -a-nced door structure, and engages a keeper :actuation of this Vlatchmember and of the PEELLE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TOTI-IE PEELLE COMPANY,`OF

BROOKLYN, vNEW' YORK,` A CORPORATlON OF NEW YORK member having associated therewith, and

being so constructed as `to ybe engaged fby,

the vbolt of a key .controlled flock mechanism,

so that when theklatch `member -is 'engaged with thefkeeper it may vbe positively held againstsuch movement as Mwill :permit the separation of the two 4door sections, 4and when the bolt is withdrawn, will permit the 'doors lin rthe v.usual manner.. The ke controlledlock mechanism is,rlike thelatch, .preferablymounted upon the lower 'door section, and if so desired, 'a type of tumbler mechanism maybe used which may beikey actua-ted `from either the floor, lor the shaft, side of the door. f l

In addition to the lkey-controlled dead, or night, lock construction .in combination with the pivoted latch, I so construct said latch member that, if desired, when the dead or night lock is released, the latch Ymay `be actu- .at-ed to permit theopening of the door from the floor `side, the yconstruction being such however, that this cannot be done except by a person having a special key for the purpose.. lThis additional means by which the latch may be actuated, is provided for the purpose of permitting theV testing ofthe latch -in `con]unction with the use of the night or dead lock, and also Vto permit access to the shaft as an emergency measure as in the event of fire, orto jpermit a watchmanV to passfrom floor to floor of the building by means of the elevator car. f

The invention consists primarily in a center lockfor counterbalanced elevator doors embodying therein the combination `with a 'side of one of said sections, a keeper Avcarried by the other section in operative relation to .saidilatch member, co-operat-ing members one of which is carried by said latch member and the other of which is mounted upon the door section carrying said latch member, whereby said latch member when it is 'engaged with said keeper may be positively held against movement from either side of the door, .and

'lOO

key controlled means whereby said co-operating members may be disengaged one from the other to permit the free engagement or disengagement of said latch member and said keeper; and in such other novel features of construction and combination of parts as are hereinafter set forth and described. and more particularly pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. l is a fragmentary viewof adjacent portions of two sections of a counterbalanced elevator door from the shaft side thereof, said sections having combined therewith a center lock mechanism embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a similar view from the floorside of the elevator door; and

Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the adjacent portion of the doorsections, and the locking mechanism upon a reduced scale.

Like letters refer to like parts throughout the several views.

In the embodiment of my invention shown in the drawings, a indicates the upper section of a counterbalanced elevator door of the usual and well known construction, and b the lower section of said door.V These sections a and b are mounted to have simultanesame vertical plane. Y D l The type of door shown in the drawings 1s of the metal sheathed, wood panelled type, and the detailed construction of these door sections and the manner of mounting them form no part of my ,present invention, as such is old and well known in this art.

It is also an old practice with such doors to provide a pivoted latch member usually c arried by 'the upper door4 section, passing through a keeper formed by the top bar o f the lower door section, and so constructed Vthat when the doors approach the meeting point of the two door sections asthey are closed, the latch member will be actuated to lock the door sections in this position. The meeting point of the two door sections is usually about halfway of the height of the door opening, the latch member being positioned adjacent the lower bar of the frame of the upper door section. The latch member is positioned upon the shaft side of the door so as to be accessible only from the elevator car. l Y

While thisV type of 'door has been extensively used, the latch mechanism has heretofore aorded a safeguard merely to the eX- tent of limiting the opening of the door from the shaft side, this lock serving as a safeguard against accidents as a result of doors being opened from the Hoor side. y

By my present invention, I provide a latch mechanism having the characteristics above referredto7 supplemented by a construction and a co-operating mechanism by which the latch member may be maintained in the the drawings.

ous movement in opposite directions inthe locked position. For securing the desired result, I provide the door section a with a housing plate c carrying a housing d in which is pivotally mounted a hooked latch member e adapted to pass through an opening b in the top bar of the lower door section b, and engage beneath this top bar to lock the sections a and b in relation to each other. The

latch member c is acted upon by a spring c. i Carried by or formed integrally With'the 75 the arm f and latch member e may be locked against movement or permitted to have free movement, according to whether it be desired to permit the opening of the doors even from the shaft side thereof. The keeper arms g-g2 project at an angle from the armls f, as shown' more particularly in Fig. 3 of Carried by the door section a is a lock mechanism h which may be of any desired tumbler construction, although an ordinaryleo paracentric lock is illustrated in the drawings'. .This lock may have either a single or a .double cylinder construction so as to permit it to be key actuated from either or both Vthe shaft and the floor side of the door. The'l bolt z.,l of this lock is adapted to pass between and into engaging relation with the keeper arms g and g2 when it is projected,

and .to be withdrawnV out of such engaging relationwith said .keeper arms when it is' `i100 arm f sufficiently' to avoid interference with: 105V said larm as it is oscillating in engaging or disengaging the latch member ve from its keeper b. `I

The 'latch member e andthe arm f-carried thereby and :extending substantially at right'- 110 angles thereto, are carried by a spindle z' having diamet'rically opposite openings z" therein to receive aspanner key. These openings z" being upon the floor side of the door, as shownmore Iparticularly in Fig. 2,'115

so-that a person entrusted with this key, and with the key of the lock mechanism L may not only disengage the bolt h from the arms g and g2 of the keeper g, but may also disengagc the latch'memberfrom its keeper from the T120 floor sideY of the door. This provision of the key-actuated latch member` will also permit the testing of the lock 17a/from the floor side of the door.

It'will be observed that when the bolt h A125 tions, one away from the other, is prevented except by a person having a key which will actuate the lock L. Hence with the construction described, when the occupant of a loft desires to prevent the unauthorized entra-nce to his premises, it is merely necessary for him to move the bolt 7L by its key-controlled mechanism into vengaging relation with the arms g-g2 of the keeper g after the doors have been properly closed and latched.

By the construction described, if the latch key is not properly engaged with its keeper Y b', the lock L cannot be actuated since one of the arms as g2 will be in the pathof movement of t-he bolt 7L.

When the parts are inthe position shown in Figs, 1 and 2, the doors cannot be opened by anyone not having the key for the lock h,

except by the breakage of saidlock, even though an elevator ear maybe at the landing protected by the door. As a consequence, it

is possible, with the use of a locking mechanism as herein described, for an occupant ofk one iioor or loft in a large building to prevent access to said oor by means ofthe elevator, except during such hours as he may desire.

The employment of a lock embodying the invention makes thefts from unoccupied lofts difficult, since even with the connivance of an elevator operator, or by the improper use of an elevator, access cannot be had from the elevator shaft to a loft, the doors of which are equipped with said lock, thus preventing the movement of merchandise in bulk from the floor to the car. Of course, as with all locks, entrance may be had by the use of force, but nevertheless the use of a lock as herein described will be an added safeguard. y

`When the loft is occupied and it is desired to permit free access thereto, the lock 7L is actuated to disengage the bolt h from the keeper g, thus permitting the latch member to be actuated from the elevator car.

Itis not my intention to limit the invention to the precise arrangement of parts shown in the drawings, the invention being illustrated as applied to a common arrangement of latch member which, however, may be changed to met different conditions of use, and changes in the details of construction of the elevator door sections.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to have protected by Letters Patent, is 1. A center lock for connterbalanced elevator doors embodying therein the combination with a pair of oppositely and vertically movable door sections, of a manually operative latch member pivotally mounted upon @9 the shaft side of one of said sections, an arm carried by, and extending at an angle to, said latch member, a keeper upon said' arm having spaced keeper arms projecting at an an- M gle to said arm, and a key controlled lock C@ having a bolt adapted to pass between said keeper arms to prevent movement of said latch member when it is engaged with its cooperating keeper, or to be withdrawn from between said arms to permit the engagement of said latch member with, or its disengagement from, its co-operating keeper.

2. VA center lock for counterbalanced elevator doors embodying therein the combination with a pair of oppositely and vertically movable door sections, of a manually operative latch member, an arm carried by, and extending at an angle to, said latch member, a spindle carrying said latch memberv and said arm, whereby they are pivotally mounted upon the shaft side of a door section, said spindle projecting through said door section, the portion thereof exposed upon the floor side of said section, having diametrically opposite recesses therein adapted to receive a spanner key, to permit the actuation of the latch member from the floor of a building, a keeper upon said arm, and a key controlled lock having a bolt adapted to engage the keeper upon said armto prevent movement of said latch member when it is engaged with its co-operating keeper, or to be disengaged from said keeper to permit the engagement of said latch member with, or Vits disengagement from, its cooperating keeper.

3. A center lock for counterbalanced elevator doorsembodying therein the combination with a pair of oppositely and vertically movable door sections, of Va manually operative latch member, an arm carried by, and extending at an angle to, said latch member, a spindle carrying said latch member and said arm, whereby they are pivotally mounted upon the shaft side of a door section, said spindle projecting through said door section, the portion thereof exposed upon the floor side of said section, having diametrically op` posite recesses therein adapted to receive a Spanner key, to permit the actuation of `the latch member from the floor of a` building,

a keeper upon said arm having spaced keepery arms projecting at an angle to said arm, and a key controlled lock having a bolt adaptedv to pass between said keeper arms to 'prevent movement of said latch member when it is engaged with its Vco-operating keeper, or tobe withdrawn from between said arms to permit the engagement of said latch member with, or its disengagement from, its cooperating keeper.

In witness whereof I have hereunto'aiiixed my signature, this 4th day of December, 1924.

` CHARLES W. PEELLE. 

